𝐏𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐀𝐝𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫’𝐬 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐦𝐧 – 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝟐𝟖, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒

𝑈𝑁𝐷𝐸𝑅𝑆𝑇𝐴𝑁𝐷𝐼𝑁𝐺 𝑇𝐻𝐸 𝑀𝐴𝑆𝑆

Thomas Merton wrote that “Each time the Mass is offered, the fruits of our redemption are poured out anew upon our souls. By uniting ourselves with the sacred rite of the Mass, and above all by receiving Holy Communion, we enter into the sacrifice of Christ. We mystically die with the divine victim and rise again with Him to new life in God. We are freed from our sins, we are once again pleasing to God, and we receive grace to follow Him more generously in the life of charity and fraternal union which is the life of this mystical Body.” (The living Bread).

What is the Mass? The term “Mass” is an English rendering of the Latin term “Missa.” In the Latin the Mass ends with “Ite Missa est” which translated into English means “Go it is sent.” The “it” being the Church, as the people of God. From the Latin word “Missa” comes the English word “dismiss.” So “Mass” means “dismissal.” The celebration takes its name from the sending forth that occurs at the end of every Mass. “Go” is one of Jesus’ final words to His disciples as He ascends into heaven in the Gospel of Matthew’s account (Matthew 28:19). Hence, the way every Mass ends with “go” is at the heart of what we come to the Mass for – to be empowered by God and sent forth again.

Other names for the Mass include “The Breaking of Bread,” “The Lord’s Supper,” “The Eucharist,” “The Holy Sacrifice,” and “The Heavenly Banquet.” The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines the Mass by saying, “The Eucharist is the heart and the summit of the Church’s life for in it Christ associates his Church and all her members with his sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving offered once for all on the cross to his Father; by this sacrifice, he pours out the graces of salvation on his body which is the Church.” (No. 1407).

So, is there any activity that we as Catholic Christians participate in during our earthly lives that is more important than the Mass? Eight words help us understand what happens at Mass. We gather, we prepare, we listen, we respond, we offer, we receive, we go and we proclaim the marvelous things God has done for us in and through Jesus Christ!

𝘏𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘸𝘦𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘚𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬!

    𝑹𝒆𝒗. 𝑻𝒉𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒔 𝑴𝒂𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒍𝒆𝒚